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Gone off track

We all have times when things just don't work out as planned. Well, Monday was one of those days for us. I am sad to admit that our dinner yesterday evening went from lean to mean in the blink of an eye and oh did it ever taste good! The original plan was to have BBQ Chicken, Greek Spinach & Rice, Glazed Carrots, & Corn, but temptation set in.

Despite this foggy, wet weather my hubby was in charge of firing up the grill and bbq'ing the chicken. One thing lead to another and next thing I knew I was assisting him with the toothpicks as he wrapped mouthwatering bacon around each boneless skinless chicken breast. I know, I know... as soon as I saw the bacon in his hands I should've shunned him back to the fridge with it, but I am weak in the presence of the almighty bacon. It was only 3 slices per chicken though so that's not too bad, right?

I totally messed up on the rice. I had found a Weight Watchers recipe for Greek Spinach & Rice at Dotti's Weight Loss Zone. I took all the ingredients out and started prepping early afternoon, but because I was using frozen spinach I tucked it back into the freezer. And yup, you guessed it... I totally forgot to add it in the end. The rice was still good, but I'm sure it would've tasted that much better if I had remembered to include the spinach. I guess the delicious smell of bacon threw me off track. :)

The recipe is below. I didn't follow the recipe completely. I used my rice cooker and used an unknown mix of rice that we had in the pantry.Greek Spinach & Rice

Greek Spinach & Rice

To use half a package of the frozen spinach, place the unwrapped spinach in

a microwave-safe dish and cook on 30% power (medium-low) for 2 to 4 minutes
or just till soft enough to cut in half with a sharp knife. Rewrap one half and
return to freezer. Continue to cook the remaining half on 30% power
for 3 to 5 minutes more or till thawed.

In a medium saucepan combine water, onion, garlic, oregano, chicken bouillon granules,
lemon peel or juice, and pepper. Bring to boiling. Stir in rice; reduce heat. Cover
and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in spinach. Cover and cook for 5 to 10 minutes
more or till rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Stir lightly with a fork before
serving. Garnish with lemon peel strips, if desired.

I was at the Bulk Barn last week and decided to try out one of their rice blends. It is Aztec Blend #1656. It includes colusari red rice, long grain brown rice, split peas, and amaranth. I had no idea what some of those ingredients were but figured anything's worth a try, right? When I got home I looked up colusari rice & amaranth. Colusari rice is a burgundy-colored chewy rice that has a light nutty-popcorn-like flavor and amaranth is actually an herb.

It was very simple to prepare & actually pretty good. The peas were a little crunchy which added nice texture. I was surprised that both kids really liked it.

This is a meal that we had last week that was entirely planned using Pinterest. Thoe of you who know me well are well aware of my addiction to Pinterest. Yes, addiction. It has even been said that I need a Pin-tervention. :) I cannot help it though, I not only enjoy looking for recipe this way, but I have found it very helpful in meal planning. I now even have weekly menu boards created on Pinterest to organize my weekly meal plans. It has become a great tool. So I guess you could say that this meal, in a small way, does prove that I actually do make recipes that I find on there. :) Anyway, I was in the mood for a different kind of bbq meal so I choose to make Asian Grilled Drumsticks, Asian Cabbage Mango Slaw, Tricolor Thai Salad with Zucchini & Yellow Squash, and plain white rice. Early in the day I put the salads together and because there were so many vegetables it involved a bit of prep work. Plus l thought it would be a good idea to get the vegetables maridnad…